HunterXNinja
by max3833
Summary: The world is a big place and Sarutobi is force...I mean decides that the chuunin hopefuls should go out and see it, and what better way than by making the Hunter Exam the Chuunin Exam, forcing them all to compete against competetion from around the world.


Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Max3833 presents

The Ninja Hunters!

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" Hokage Sarutobi asked. The old man in front of him smiled as he nodded.

"It is time for a new crop of ninja to join the older generations," the man answered. He had a long gray beard and his hair was tied in a top-knot. His clothes were oriental in style, and the look of a wizened sage covered his face.

"But they are just getting ready for the Chuunin exams," Sarutobi, nearly as aged looking as the man across from him, sputtered out. This only caused his opponent to smile.

"Then make my exams and your exams the same. As the host village, you should be able to just combine the Hunter Exam and the Chuunin Exam together. Make it a quest for your contestants. Let them find their way to the examination, complete it, and then reward those that win the Hunter's license with the title of chuunin," Netero said as he calmly puffed on the pipe the Hokage had provided for him.

"Sir," Sarutobi seethed, "The Chuunin Exams are meant not only to test an individual's talents, but also…"

"Don't give me that crap about teamwork," Netero said dismissively, "You know that many teams drag down the better and more worthy ninjas because of instructors babying some ninja, and thus forcing the others to pick up the slack. I say let the ones that deserve to go get to the exam, and then fight as individuals."

"But," Sarutobi sighed, "No one has ever sent such a mass outpouring of Ninja to the outside world."

"Then this will be a good experience for them," Netero smiled, causing Sarutobi to frown.

He really was getting too old for this crap.

* * *

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki and I am going to beat all of you!"

All eight of Naruto's classmates' sweatdropped as the felt the killer intent in the room sky rocket. The idiot had just made them even bigger targets for their competition, despite Kabuto's warnings about their strength. Just as the entire group of prospects were about to close in on the rookies, a cloud of smoke exploded in the front part of the room.

"Everyone sit down and shut up!" a large man in a dark coat and blue bandana shouted at the genin. This immediately caused the killing intent of the examinees to drop, and all attention turned to the man.

"Now that that little incident is out of the way," the man said, "Let us begin. My name is Ibiki, and I am your first proctor."

"Now, as you all know," he continued, "The Chuunin Exam is a test that is meant to provide the opportunity for genin such as your selves to rise through the ranks to the level of chuunin. This means tougher missions, better access to your village's secrets, and more respect from your fellow shinobi."

"Usually, these exams are held at one of the villages training grounds, and are based on the team work of a ninja unit. That way, chuunin are tested on their own abilities as well as their talents in situations made by the proctors," Many of the contestants nodded as the scarred man sighed. He was not in favor of the new exam, as he thought it took away from his own fun, but he had to follow orders.

"This year however," the entire group suddenly listened more closely, "Due to an outside organization's inquiry into the state of the shinobi nations, it has been decided by the Hokage to change the format for this exam. For this presentation, I hereby end my part of the examination, and give the job of explaining the rest of the exam to the man in charge of the organization, Netero!"

The entire group of genin, already shocked at the news of the change of the exam, was even more shocked when an old man with a grey beard and a top-knot walked into the room. Finally, the sand nin who team seven had met earlier in the day, the one who was wearing a cat suit, stepped forward.

"What the hell are you doing here," Kankurou shouted, "Outsiders are strictly forbidden on the hidden continent!"

"That may be true," Netero admitted, "But I am here to end the secret of the hidden continent."

The entire room backed away in shock as the old man released an aura stronger than anything that they had ever felt. Even Naruto took a step back when he felt it.

'Man,' he thought, 'This guy's seems stronger than even Zabuza and Kakashi-sensei.'

In fact, the only one not frightened by Netero's show of power was the red headed sand Nin, whose face was covered with nothing more than a look of disdain. Netero noticed this and smirked. 'It appears at least one of them is already hunter material. Let's hope there are others.'

"Now to explain how your exam will commence," Netero said as he lowered his aura, releasing the genin from fear, "I have convinced the Hokage to combine the Chuunin Exam with the Hunter Exam."

This caused several of the ninja to gasp, while the others looked at them with confusion. Naruto turned to Sakura, who was holding her hand over her mouth.

"What the heck is the Hunter Exam?" he asked her, and several of the others also turned their attention to the pink-haired girl as she began her lecture.

"The Hunter Exam is much like the Chuunin Exam, except it does not simply apply to ninja," she began, "In fact, as long as you can find the location that the exam is held in, anyone could compete for the title of Hunter."

"Then what the hell is a hunter," Naruto asked, growing more confused from the explanation.

"Hunters are basically the shinobi of all the places not belonging to the hidden continent," Sakura continued, "They are able to do almost anything they please, go to most places where citizens are restricted, and are among the only outsiders who are capable of coming to this continent."

"The young woman is correct," Netero continued, "In fact, many ninja who have been famous in your land have passed the Hunter's Exam, such as the Third Hokage, the Sannin, the third Kazekage, the Fourth Hokage, and even Kisame of the Mist all hold Hunter's licenses."

"Whoa," Kiba balked, "Those are some of the best in history."

"But after the third ninja war," Netero continued, "The villages grew too fearful of outsiders. As such, they ended all trips to the Hunter Exam for ninja, and thus, for over a decade, not a single member of the shinobi from the hidden continent has become a Hunter."

"So I decided to end that by combining the two exams together," Netero said proudly, "Now, if you complete the Hunter Exam, you will also be granted the title of chuunin of your village, and have come even farther towards your own personal goals."

"So thus the first part of the Hunter's Exam begins for you all," Netero suddenly began to walk out the door at the front of the room, "Your job now is to reach the city of Zaban and find where the Exam is being held. I'd say you have about," he looked down at his electronic watch, "three weeks to get there, good luck."

The entire group stared at each other, contemplating what they had just heard. In less than thirty seconds, the entire group was running out the door, flying through the windows, or in Rock Lee's case, smashing through the walls. This while chanting about how the power of youth would deliver him victory.

* * *

"Man," Naruto seethed as he sat in team seven's training ground, "How am I supposed to find this place."

It had already been a week since the change in the Exam venue had been announced, and Naruto had yet to make his move. Originally, he had planned to work with his team to get to the town, but they had left before he could even get a word in. By the next day, not a single remaining contestant for the Exam was still in Konoha, so he had been unable to talk with any of them about ideas of how to make it there. Then, he couldn't find Kakashi, his sensei, leaving him even more clueless. Now all he could do was try to find the Hokage.

That had proved extremely difficult

"That should be easy enough," he heard a voice from behind say, "Hello Naruto."

"Ah," Naruto turned to see the Hokage, "Hey old man," suddenly, his expression grew darker, "how could you let that geezer push you around."

"Because he and I are good friends," Sarutobi said, "and in a fight, that geezer could beat me easily."

"Well who couldn't," Naruto stated flatly, causing the Hokage to lose his balance, "I mean I beat you with my Sexy Jutsu."

"I wasn't prepared!" Sarutobi shouted, his face covered in a pink blush.

"Yeah, yeah," Naruto moaned, "Tell it to the judge."

"Wait Naruto," the Hokage said, again catching the boy's attention, "I noticed you were having a hard time finding a way to Zaban."

"Yeah, I have only left the village once in my life, of course it would be hard for me to find a way to another continent," Naruto answered in a deadpan tone, "And then Sasuke, Sakura, and everybody else have already left. I don't stand a chance if I can't somehow get a one way ticket to Zaban."

"Well," the Hokage began, "you would be surprised what you can find when you go to the beach."

"What the heck does that…" Just as Naruto was about to confront the closest person he had to a grandfather, Sarutobi disappeared into the air, leaving nothing but a swirl of leaves.

"What the hell did he mean," Naruto thought out loud, "The beach… wait a minute," he snapped his fingers, "since it is on another continent, I need to cross the ocean to get there. So that means that I should head to a port. Maybe I will be able to find a ship that can take me to the continent where the exam is being held. And I know just the place!"

With that, Naruto sprinted home, preparing his supplies for the long trip. He would need to get ready for the biggest adventure he would ever live through.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Legion of Do… I mean the Akatsuki headquarters.

"Zetsu," Pain said as he addressed the image of the man with a Venus Fly Trap covering his head, "what news have you gathered from the Chuunin Exams."

"Sir," the image flickered as it began the report, "As expected, both the container of the one-tailed beast and the container of the nine-tailed beast are both partaking in the exam. But," the image itself grew more quiet, "The exam is not being held in Konoha this year as it was planned."

"What!" a tall man, whose face was covered, Kakazu, shouted, "How is that possible, the exam is always planned years in advance!"

"Apparently," the plant man began, "Netero the Hunter talked the Hokage into making both the Chuunin Exam and the Hunter Exam into the same event. That means that not one but two Jinchuuriki are going to be several continents away in the next three months. And then there is no guarantee that they will return."

"So that means," Konan reasoned, "That we must send a group to trail them."

"Kisame," Pain turned to the shark like man, "you have a hunter license, correct?"

"Yes," Kisame said with confusion.

"Then you and Itachi will go after them," Pain concluded, before pausing, "…You should also take Deidara, seeing as you are dealing with two containers."

"So that means we have to deal with the prissy fire work maker," Kisame sighed, "Well that is just great."

"Screw you, Kisame!" The blonde shouted, beginning another of the famous Akatsuki brawls that would eventually mean several days of clean up. Pain sighed as he rubbed his temples.

"My mother told me there would be days like today."

* * *

Naruto smiled as he caught sight of the bridge. The huge structure towered over the rest of the surrounding forest, as the road continued to close on the concrete mammoth, he saw three figures standing on the outside of the bridge.

"Oi!" he shouted, "Tazuna, Tsunami, Inari, how are you guys doing!"

"Naruto!" Inari shouted when he saw the boy approaching them, "It's so good to see you again!"

Naruto laughed as he hugged the younger boy, "Good to see you guys too."

"So why are you back here?" Tazuna asked, "It's not like we have asked for any more missions."

"Well I might need to explain that better," Naruto laughed as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

* * *

"So there is a big Exam on a different continent," Tazuna reasoned, "Yes, I can understand how coming here might be a good idea for finding a way off the continent."

"But why haven't you joined your team?" Tsunami asked.

"Well," Naruto sighed, "Sasuke kind of jumped at the chance to go off on his own to prove his own strength. And well, Sakura followed him too quickly for me to try to ask her if she would work with me, so I am kind of on my own here."

"Well from what I have heard from travelers during my lifetime," Tazuna rubbed his chin, "Zaban is located on Dolai. Unfortunately, after Gato, no ships going to that island have come by here."

"Aw man," Naruto groaned.

"But," Naruto perked up as Tazuna continued, "Apparently a boat leaves every three days from Degarashi Port in the Tea Country on a world trip. Perhaps you can find a ticket there, and go to Dolle, the port city for the Dolai continent. There, you should be capable of finding your way to the to Zaban."

"Alright!" Naruto shouted, as he began to run out the door, "Thanks Tazuna, I owe you guys one!"

"Wait, Naruto," Tazuna said as the boy was about to leave through the front door, "Do you know where you are going?"

Naruto thought about it for a moment, before a large sweatdrop appeared on his forehead.

"I figured as much," Tazuna sighed, before turning to Inari, "Go find a boat so we can take this kid to Degarashi."

"Right Grandpa," Inari said, as he hurried out the door, and Naruto sat down on the floor, tired already of the Hunter Exam and its many phases.

* * *

"Well Kabuto," Orochimaru smirked as he looked at his medical expert, leaning on the rim of the boat that lead to the town of Zaban, "What do you think of this change to the Hunter Exam?"

"It caught me off guard sir," the silver-haired man with glasses sighed, "I never would have thought that the Hokage would change like this on a moments notice."

"I was surprised too," Orochimaru said too happily, causing Kabuto to shiver.

"But this also means that our plans for the invasion of Konoha have to be delayed," the doctor grumbled, "and we don't know if the Kazekage might lose his nerve during that time. This really threw a wrench in our plans."

"Don't be so upset, Kabuto," The snake of a ninja laughed, "Even though the invasion has to be put off, the true objective of the attack has only become simpler," he looked over to the other end of the ship, to see Sasuke Uchiha looking out at the ocean, "Sasuke is now going to be even more isolated from his protectors, making it a far less arduous task to pick him off for myself. I can kill Sarutobi anytime. Getting the Sharingan is a more important objective at the moment."

"Well I'm glad that you are taking this so well," Kabuto sighed, "after what you did to the three grass-nin, I thought you would still be in a foul mood. I mean, letting them be eaten inside out by snakes is not something that you see everyday."

"There is no reason to worry, no will miss them, so it was easy enough to take one of their places, " He smiled through his mask, giving him the appearance of a woman in her late teens, "this will only make it easier for me to get closer to Sasuke, and fulfill my ultimate goal."

"Let's hope your right," Kabuto nodded, before looking out to see, a sudden fear growing in his heart.

The source of that anxiety was a man sitting nearby on deck. He had bright red hair pulled back to reveal his forehead. Each of his cheeks had a marking, a tear drop on his left and a star on his right. He wore a grey vest, along with matching grey pants. On the chest of the vest were the symbols of cards, spade and club, and on the back of the vest, the heart and diamond. He was currently stacking cards, causing several of the other travelers to stare. He licked his lips as he looked at Kabuto and Orochimaru.

"Now which of them will I kill first?" he wondered to himself, a small chuckle emerging as he continued to stack the cards.

* * *

"Well Naruto," Tazuna smiled, "This boat only has one more stop before Dolle. From there, you should be able to get to the exam without much of a problem."

"Thanks old man!" Naruto shouted from the deck of the ship, "Thanks for everything!"

"No problem kid!" Tazuna shouted back as the boat began to ease out of port, "Just make sure you become a super Hunter!"

"I sure will!" he shouted, eventually losing sight of his friends.

"Hey kid," Naruto turned to see a tall man standing against the mast. The man smirked at our hero, "You want to be a hunter? Ha, good luck with that. Look around kid," Naruto suddenly realized the ship was crawling with many men armed to the teeth, "Every man on this boat wants to be a hunter, and there are hundreds of boats coming to the exam each week. Face it kid, it's a lot harder to become a Hunter than you might think."

Naruto gulped as he looked out to see, fear building in his heart. He had not realised that the competition would be this fierce, and only now did he realize that he was not only competing against his fellow ninja, but also against an entire world of fighters. This was not going to be as easy as he had thought.

* * *

**NEXT TIME:**

**Naruto: Man, this is one crazy storm. Most of the people abandoned the ship. All that is left is the pervy guy, a guy who looks like a girl, and some kid not even eleven years old. Man, what kind of freaks does this stupid Exam bring together? **

**Then, once we land, we somehow end up going in the wrong direction. There is a creepy old lady, and hey, why is this one calling me God! **

**Somebody get me back to Konoha before I go insane!**

* * *

AN: And Cut! The first chapter of my newest story complete and I have to say, I am proud of this chapter and this idea.

I have been a fan of Togashi Yoshihiro ever since I watch Yu Yu Hakashu, and I was shocked that it took so long for HunterXHunter to make it to the US. Though I do not approve of his many Hiatus, his story telling is so good that I couldn't help but think, hey, how would Naruto and the rest of the Konoha twelve do in the Hunter Exam, thus, this fic was born.

Actually, if you look at the story closely, you'll notice that the bastard named Kishimoto actually stole a lot of the ideas from HXH to make Naruto. The exam, an old woman masquerading as a young one, a clan of red eyed warriors being massacred and the only survivor of the clan seeking revenge. Really, this was published in 1998, and Naruto in 1999, so it can be said that Kishimoto did get some influence from him.

I hope you like the story so far, because I'm going to continue to work on this one until I give a one year anniversary to Worlds Collide. Until next time, Sayonara!


End file.
